Huffington Post Live hosted a fascinating discussion panel on the effects and ethics of smart drugs at a personal and societal level. The panel included Dave Asperey of Bulletproof Nutrition, Clinical Psychologist Todd Essig, and Atlantic and New York Times contributor Steven Petrow.

ADHD medication use is an open secret in the world of startups. Do these prescription drugs give an edge in such cut-throat industries? Is "brain hacking" an unfair advantage in a supposed meritocracy, or could it be a safe way to improve our lives?

A professor of molecular and cellular biology at Harvard named Takao Hensch discovered a new way to recreate the elasticity of younger brains using valproic acid. Adults in his research were able to rapidly acquire the skill of perfect pitch. This insight may be able to be applied to help adults quickly learn new languages.